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New Study Estimates More than One Million New Yorkers Would Become Uninsured Under ACA Repeal

The Urban Institute released a new report today, which examines the implications of a partial repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) through a process known as budget reconciliation. According the report’s findings, more than 1.1 million New Yorkers would become uninsured by 2019 under a partial repeal of the ACA.

New York State also stands to lose substantial funding from the federal government:

The Urban Institute estimates that New York would lose more than $10 billion by 2028 in premium tax credits and cost-sharing reductions, which help make health insurance more affordable for individuals and families.

The Urban Institute also estimates that New York would lose approximately $47 billion by 2028 in funding for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

Although not included in the study, New York would also lose funding for its Basic Health Plan, branded the Essential Plan, which currently insures nearly 600,000 people.

Nationally, the number of uninsured is estimated to increase by 103 percent or 29.8 million people by 2019 under partial repeal. It is also estimated that there would be 12.9 million fewer people with Medicaid and CHIP coverage in 2019.

If you or someone you know would be affected by any of these issues, please share your story.

Affordable insurance? Sign me up!

A lot of people are worried about their coverage options right now, but the first thing to know is that it is still Open Enrollment for the Marketplaces created by the Affordable Care Act. Anyone who is uninsured or needs to renew should go ahead and get coverage set up for 2017.

If you are re-enrolling or are signing up for the first time and need coverage that starts on January 1, the deadline is December 15. The last day of Open Enrollment is January 31.

Both signing up and re-enrolling can be done through the NY State of Health Marketplace. The New York State of Health also funds Navigators all over the state who can help you apply, whether you are shopping for a small business, for your family, or just for yourself. The Navigators receive special training and are certified by the state. They know the plans inside and out and will help you understand your options. You can even make appointments to get help in-person.

You can look for a Navigator near you using the directory available here. The Community Service Society is one of the Navigator agencies and provides a helpline at 888-614-5400. Don’t be shy about calling – there are a lot of choices and it can be a big decision.

Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), 20 million Americans have enrolled in health insurance, and the uninsured rate has sunk to the lowest level on record. In New York, our ACA marketplace, the New York State of Health, has enrolled more than 2.8 million New Yorkers into high quality affordable coverage. New York’s uninsurance rate was cut in half between 2013 and 2015.

The ACA provides free coverage or subsidized coverage to the vast majority of New Yorkers obtaining coverage on the NY State of Health marketplace. The new Essential Plan provides free or low-cost coverage to almost 600,000 New Yorkers. The ACA also makes insurance work better for consumers. The extensive list of consumer protections it offers includes: preventive care with no cost-sharing; an end to lifetime and annual limits; a prohibition on discrimination in health care; and no more denials or delays of coverage because of pre-existing conditions.

HCFANY knows that many consumers woke up this morning worrying about whether they will lose the coverage they count on because of threats to repeal the ACA.

HCFANY calls on our elected leaders to assuage their fears and act as soon as practicable to maintain the advances in coverage that New Yorkers have received since the ACA was enacted. New York has always been a leader on health coverage issues. We look to the leadership of New York State to continue to find ways to provide quality, affordable coverage for all New Yorkers.

Open enrollment for 2017 coverage continues, and consumers should enroll or renew their coverage at the NY State of Health. Navigators are also available to help consumers review their options.

Last week, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) released a new issue brief examining health coverage by race and ethnicity under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and its impact on disparities in health coverage. The KFF analysis found that non-elderly people of color have experienced larger coverage gains than non-elderly white people since the implementation of the ACA. According to KFF data, national uninsured rates decreased by 9 percentage points for Hispanic/Latino people, 7 percentage points for Asian people, and 5 percentage points for non-Hispanic Black people from 2013 to 2015 compared to 4 percentage points for white people.

People of color in New York State have experienced similar gains in coverage under the ACA. According to data from the United States Census Bureau, uninsured rates in New York State decreased by 10.2 percentage points for American Indian/Alaskan Native people, 7.3 percentage points for Hispanic/Latino people, 6.3 percentage points for Asian people, and 4.9 percentage points for non-Hispanic Black people from 2013 to 2015 compared to 3.3 percentage points for white people. The only group that did not experience these comparatively larger coverage gains was the Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander population.

This an important step forward in the reduction of health coverage disparities. However, the KFF brief warns that even with the larger coverage gains, people of color are still more likely to be uninsured than white people. Nationally, people of color accounted for more than half of the 28.5 million remaining uninsured in 2015.

Targeted outreach and enrollment efforts to reach the remaining uninsured, many of whom are eligible for coverage as well as financial assistance, could augment these coverage gains and continue the progress toward health coverage equity that has already begun under the ACA.

Health Care for All New York

Fighting for Quality Affordable Health Care for All New YorkersThis site is maintained by the Community Service Society of New York